Paradise Never: Redux
by StrykeEmUp
Summary: A Paradise Never rewrite. The Hunters have defeated Sigma and given the world a moment of peace, but a new Maverick leader has taken control, posing an even greater threat to the universe... Rated T for language, violence & crude humor. CH. 5 UP!
1. Off Time

Paradise Never: Redux  
By: StrykeEmUp (aka SylentStryke)  
Rated T

Disclaimer: Hey! Nothing much to say here but I don't own Capcom in any way possible, therefore, Megaman belongs to them. I own my original characters and ideas.

Author's Note: It seems I've forgotten my credentials for my account, so I created a new one. This fic is a rewrite of the original Paradise Never. I recommend you read this one even if you've read the original. It'll be a blast! On with the show!

* * *

**Chapter 1: Off Time**

Day 1  
Deep Forested Area  
Time:  
-20:08-

Footsteps. Swift, but quiet, footsteps. There were dozens of them. The 13th Maverick Sting Corps ran swiftly through the thick forest brush. They were on a mission; complete the testing of a weapon prototype. They quickened their pace out of determination. As the unit leader, Scar had a lot riding on his back.

_Scar is sitting in a room at a table. A dark figure is seated across from him. They both wear dark expressions._

"_How would you like to make a little deal, hmm?" The larger being offered. Scar answered with silence._

"_If you complete this mission,__" He waved a weird little device in front of him. "Then I'll give this back. If you fail--" He trailed off while giving a "you-know-what-will-happen" smirk. "So, what do you say?" Scar sat there with the same emotionless posture he came in with and mulled the offer over._

"_Deal." He said in almost a whisper._

Scar remained emotionless. His soul was burning with the desire to complete his objective. Nothing would get in his way. He tapped into his mental map:

_Time: 20:12  
__RemDis: 200 feet till destination_

He signaled his unit to slow down. They stopped near a ledge, overlooking the massive structure, MHHQ.

"Security is heavy: Flood lights searching every corner of the giant structure, infrared lasers guarding every door, timed security scanners emitting 50 yard radius pulses every few minutes. Shit! Sir, are you sure we can do this?" A rookie Maverick asked. He got no response. "I mean, look at this security! If we take a step closer, we'll be--" He stopped short. Scar didn't say a word; he instead looked the rookie right in the eye, sending a wave of ice through him. The rookie gulped.

"Don't tear a nerve, rook. You got nothin' to worry about!" A cocky Maverick said a few moments later. She was second in command and damn proud of it, evident by the large grin she seemed to wear constantly. "Heavy shit like this is _nothin_'. Piece of cake for Echo!"

"Listen up," Scar said, gaining attention. His voice startled some of the rookies. "This is the relay point. Tomorrow morning we will be executing the operation. I recommend that you all get some rest and be prepared. You will not fail me. Stay in the area. Dismissed."

"Sir!" The small group of Mavericks saluted their officer and went about their business.

* * *

MHHQ, Admin Sector  
Time:  
-21:28-

Doors crashed open, smacking around poor bystanders in the way as the extremely proud Maverick Hunter known as Zero came dashing through the Level 4 hall. Why he was so proud was a mystery. Any poor pedestrian in his way either got a face-full of wall or a face-full of footprints.

"Hehehe!" Zero giggled boyishly. He rounded a corner and slowed down to a walk. "Man, I really miss the old days! Getting' offa work early, no worries. I don't see why I have to fill out a buncha forms and documents anyway. I'm a Maverick Killer, not a pencil-pusher! I think they should let the women do all of the--"

"Paperwork?" A feminine voice emanated, finishing his sentence.

Busted. He was in trouble, and he knew it. Only one person in the entire base had such a voice; a voice that could be sweet one minute and terrifying the next. The voice that he hears five days a week, for eight hours at a time for the past few months. A fellow 'co-worker'.

"Paperwork? No! I was actually gonna say, er, 'Leyna should just act like she never saw me because I'm her best friend'?" He put on the widest grin he could, hoping that Leyna would buy the bridge he was selling. Problem was, there was no river in sight.

"Now why do I find that hard to believe? We wouldn't be ditching, would we?" Leyna stared at him with accusing eyes as she emphasized on the word 'ditching.'

"Damn," he exasperated. "So how did you know? I've been so careful!"

She pointed down the hall at all the victims who were either plastered in the wall or sprawled on the ground. Zero dropped his face into an open palm.

"Plus your computer is broken. How did _that_ happen?"

"Wha? I dunno, the blasted thing's been broken for weeks now." She offered him silence.

"For _weeks?_ Zero, how have you been keeping up on your work then?" Leyna interrogated with force in her voice.

"I got people." Zero responded. She rolled her eyes.

"…people?" She mocked. He shook his head slowly. She sighed. "So, where are you taking me? Bar, movie, dinner, mall?" His sly smirk vanished as confusion set in. She started walking back toward the administrative area, beckoning him to follow.

"What do you mean," the blonde asked slowly, still perplexed as to why she changed the subject so suddenly. When Leyna got to her desk, she opened the bottom right drawer and pulled out a weeks worth of files and notes, all completed and addressed to Zero. Her handwriting was one every piece of paper. He looked between the pile of work and the purple haired girl holding them.

"Um...why do you have those?" he asked the obvious.

"Because your 'people' did you a favor. Now, it's time to return it." She said smoothly.

"How does a trip to the mall sound?" He offered. She smiled gracefully as she filed the papers away.

"I'll be ready in ten!" She sounded off while exiting. Zero took one last look at the pile of papers and shook his head before leaving.

* * *

MHHQ, Armory  
Time:  
-21:41-

Heavy, sluggish feet carried X to his armor locker down in the B5 basement sector of the armory. He felt like giving control to gravity and letting himself tumble down the few flights of stairs, but that would mean a trip to Kicker, the lead doc, for repair and a lecture. An I.T. jump wouldn't work because of security shielding. After all, if an unauthorized identity were to transit into their weapons depot, well…things wouldn't be good.

"Ahhh," He sighed as he sat down on the bench, finally reaching his locker. He removed his helmet sorely, releasing the synthetic sweat that built up during his training. He thought about his past battles. A few years ago, such intense training wasn't needed with the constant Maverick activity bustling. Ever since the lull in attacks the Hunters found themselves behind desks more than enemy lines.

"Phew!" X sighed as the final piece of armor clattered to the ground. He stood and pried open the locker door and was welcomed with a freezing waterfall. X nearly jumped a foot out of his body when the chilled water. Inside, in a dry spot on the far wall was a note.

_Hey, X!  
__Hope you don't mind if I store this ice in your fridge. I'm gonna need it later!_

_P.S.  
__Might wanna fix this thing later, its not as cold as it was before.  
__-Zero_

X eyed the note as realization set in. A few months ago he left an ice weapon program active after storing his armor, which iced his entire locker down. Not to mention that his locker door looked like a fridge to begin with. All that made it easy for Zero to mistake his locker for an ice box.

Too shocked from the water to express anger, X tried to recuperate from his near system reboot. He pulled a pen from his pocket, and scribbled on back of the note. Then he stuffed it in his pocket along with the pen, took a long sigh, and reached for a drying towel. Well, at least now he doesn't need a shower, just a heater.

* * *

Alright! Welcome to the redux! I finally got around to re-rewriting my old story, hopefully making it more complete that the original was. Feel free to drop a review!

Till Next Time!


	2. Experiments and Prep

Disclaimer: Hey! Nothing much to say here but I don't own Capcom in any way possible, therefore, Megaman belongs to them. I own my original characters and ideas.

* * *

**Chapter 2: Experiments and Prep**

Day 1  
Gene's Bar  
Time:  
-22:31-

As Zero and Leyna walked in the door to the bar, they were greeted by the members of the 17th Division. Locke, who was usually clad in melancholy gray armor, had on jeans and a printed blue T-shirt. Stryke was wearing a black and blue sweat suit, and Kicker still wore his white armor with a blue medical cross across his chest. They already had ordered Leyna's drink, but left Zero to get his own, because his drink preference changes hourly.

"Hey Zero. Sorry we didn't get your drink but," Stryke started but was cut off.

"I know, I know. It's fine. Now, gimme that menu!" He took a moment to study the menu with vigor. A waitress presented herself at the table. "Hmm, you guys go ahead and order your stuff. It might take me awhile." Zero said to the group.

"Ok, I'll have a shaken martini please." Locke ordered. Stryke ordered a glass of water. Zero chuckled while his face was still in the menu. Kicker ordered something light alcoholic that no one else could pronounce.

"Ok!" Zero exploded. "Here's my order: One martini, a barracuda punch, and six," he paused. "No, make that _eight_ suicide shockers, and a very large bowl. That'll be all." He gave the waitress a wide grin.

"THAT'S ALL?!" The group said in unison. Zero looked innocently at them.

"What?"

"Whaddaya mean, _what_?! You're gonna explode from all of that!" Leyna shouted, nearly standing up. Her little outburst had unintentionally gotten half of the bar's attention. He laughed as if he just discovered water.

"Nah! See, I carefully calculated the amount of alcohol I could consume and not have serious complications, and then I ordered double that amount." He stated matter-of-factly. Before Leyna could protest anymore, he added, "Therefore, I have been training for hours on end for a number of weeks to expand my already high tolerance. So I'm ready. In theory."

"In theory." She repeated. He nodded sagely. Stryke and Locke were about to explode from laughter. Kicker was thinking about how many Lifesaver units it would take to haul his ass down to the armory. Maybe he should have arranged for a high pressure water hose to be prepared. The waitress had returned with everyone's drinks, with a second waitress holding Zero's massive order. Without a second thought, the determined hunter poured all of the liquor into the bowl and stirred it up with a few spoons. The crowd that gathered around gasped in awe. He smirked as he stood up.

"Ladies and non-ladies!" He rumbled out, gathering the attention of everyone in the damn bar. "Prepare to witness history in the making! I will attempt, no. I will _succeed _in downing this massive booze pool!" Stryke was now on the floor, bawling. Leyna felt her cheeks redden. The crowd of mixed drunks cheered as Zero picked up the bowl of sweet smelling liquor.

Zero started chugging his "Mega Elixir" and the crowd around him cheered him on. Zero could stomach in one hour what an experienced drunk could get down in one day. After about forty-five adrenaline pumped seconds, he slammed the bowl down on the table. The crowd went silent. Zero, looking like he had just emerged from a war, slowly thrust his fist into the air and let out a warcry. The crowd mimicked him and chanted his name as he and the gang left the loud bar.

"Well I'll be damned!" Kicker exclaimed.

"What? You thought I couldn't do it?" Zero spoke with a normal tone. Before anyone could answer he stopped abruptly. "Oh, crap. Listen up, guys! 324-44d-787w000!" He shouted out right before he let out the most monstrous belch ever known to the world. He then proceeded to rock forward a bit, then tumble backwards into Stryke's arms, making him stagger from the sudden dead weight. This struck everyone dumb.

"What the flip?" Locke said slowly while looking at everyone else. They all wore the same expression. Leyna punched the numbers into the panel of Zero's hovercar and the doors slid open. She hopped into the driver's seat and started the vehicle. Locke and Stryke hauled Zero into the back seat of the ride while Kicker jumped into the front passenger seat.

"I _knew_ he wouldn't be able to last much longer!" Kicker revealed.

"The alcohol, right?" Leyna deadpanned, frowning deeply at Zero from the rearview cam.

"Yes. See, because his body wasn't used to taking in so much alcohol at once, it backfired on him. When he belched, he felt the effects of the alcohol all at once." The experienced doctor said sagely. The crew could only shake their heads as the crimson demon snored as loud as his personality.

"And this is the man leading the most covert Hunters in the world…" Leyna sighed.

* * *

MHHQ, Living Quarters  
Time:  
-22:43-

X walked casually out of Zero's quarters with a satisfied grin on his face. He was now dressed in his evening outfit: a black t- shirt, baggy gray pants and broken in tennis shoes. Comfortable clothes. After the intense training he was feeling hungry, so he went to the mess hall to grab a snack. When he got there, he noticed some of Zero's Unit sitting on the far side. They were conversing about how their lead officer downed a gallon of the strongest liquor Gene's had to offer. X never really did see the point in drinking, but he had warmed up to it over the past few years. Especially tonight, since Zero wouldn't possibly be able to see what would hit him in the morning.

He went through the line, looking for a salad bowl. All out. He then eyed a vegetable soup bowl and tons of leftover "chef's surprise." After the water bath he had enough surprises for one night. He found a seat that was somewhat secluded along a wall. He sighed as he sat down and winced as his body was sore from his trek up and down the armory stairs. Turns out that our crimson friend caused the elevator to crash. A 2,000 lb. ride armor shouldn't really fit in an elevator with a weight limit of 1,000 lbs. But he had a _really_ hot date! That's reason enough, right? X began eating. The soup was lukewarm and had an awful after-taste, but he couldn't care less; hunger conquers taste right now.

"Hey, X." The sudden presence of the voice made him choke on his spoon. After much gagging and coughing he managed to form words.

"Hah! Hi, Alia!" He said without turning around.

"Oh my gosh! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you choke!"

"That's ok. I would have probably choked anyway," he said, referring to the soup. He turned around and looked up at the blonde navigator, immediately wishing that he didn't. She was wearing a black t-shirt that was fairly snug and pink sweatpants. He motioned for her to seat as he tried to cough his dirty thoughts away.

"So, how was your day?" Alia asked curiously.

"Well, let's see, after the combat training, I had to walk down five flights of stairs to my armor locker, opened it only to find tons of water to crash out of it onto me, that was a present from Zero by the way, and now I'm telling you how my day was while eating crap soup. All in all, it was okay." She pouted her lips.

"Aww. Poor you. Are you gonna get him back?"

"Hehe. Already done." He smirked evilly.

Alia grinned and asked him to tell her what he had planned. He looked over at the Zero posse and saw that they had mostly dispersed. He whispered in her ear and her grin grew.

"Think it'll work, X?"

"If this doesn't, then nothing else will."

"All right, bout time! I still need to get him back for the time when I first joined up. I asked him to show me where the dorms were and he led me into the men's locker room!" She scowled at the memory. X held back a smirk as he tried to keep a straight face, because he had a part in that little joke. But he would never tell her that. Then she had a thought.

"Hey, how about we go edit that note? Get him back for me, too?" She asked sweetly, standing up. He smiled sinisterly again as he dumped the cold bowl of soup into the trash can. They made their way across the empty mess hall, Alia taking point. X soon found his eyes traveling down her body, noticing that the pink sweatpants she wore were also form-fitting. He started coughing randomly again, signaling to the blonde navigator that she had his full attention. She smirked as they made their way around the corner.

* * *

Day 2  
Cliffs  
Time:  
-05:39-

While the rookies of the 13th unit slept, Scar and Echo stood watch. Echo was busy punching the air, drawing her bladed tonfas every once in a while. Scar just sat in one spot, thinking about the mission. The sun was peeking over the horizon, as if it was sneaking a peek at the being in the forested cliffs.

"_Scar. Scar._" A deep, menacing voice emanated from deep within his mind.

"_What do you want from me now?_" He thought back.

"_Nothing. Just reminding you not to try anything you might regret later._"

"_Whatever." _Scar growled. The voice chuckled.

"_So. Scar, tell me, what's it like to have betrayed those who took you in..."_

"_GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!" _The maverick almost roared out loud, catching the attention of some of his drowsy unit.

"_Hehe. Just remember, I'm always watching you..."_

"Hey, Scar, you ok? Not spazzin' out now, are ya?" Echo asked her commander. He didn't bother answering. Echo faked a sad expression on her face. He finally sighed.

"I'm fine, Echo."

"Kay, just checkin'!"

"So, Echo," A female voice asked suddenly. The reploid it belonged to de-cloaked herself. She looked like a carbon copy of Echo, save for the hair which was jet black with silver and red tips. Her eyes chilled with a pale blue. Rayne carried an odd rifle on her back. "You ready?"

The first twin re-sheathed her blades and looked over towards the massive base. She turned her head and gave a smirk...

* * *

Another chapter down! More to come…

Till Next Time!


	3. The Pain of Warfare pt 1

Disclaimer: Blah blah blah. I don't own Megaman X.

* * *

**Chapter 3: The Pain of Warfare pt. 1**

Day 2  
MHHQ, Dorms  
Time:  
-06:45-

Locke was awakened by a series of desperate knocks on her door, followed by bloodcurdling wails. She stared at the door as the noise faded. It came back, louder than ever. This time the knocking almost shook the doors from its tracks.

"What?!" Locke screamed, half out of surprise, half out of annoyance.

"Locke! Let me in please! Hurry, they're going to get me!" She recognized the voice, even though he was practically shrieking.

"Is it an attack?" She asked while shuffling around her capsule for clothes and a weapon.

"Yes! Damn it! Hurry! Please!" He yelped. She jumped over to the door and slowly opened it, gripping her pistol tightly. Zero wasn't having this and yanked the door open as he dove through.

He stood up and dodged a flying pair of scissors that came close to chopping off his beloved ponytail. He turned to Locke and asked her a random question.

"Will you say 'Stop' as many times as possibly can?!" He dodged the feisty cutting tool as it whizzed by.

"…wha?"

"Please!"

"Fine! Stopstopstopstopstopstopstopstopstopstopstop," She started, confused as all hell.

"What do you do at a green light?!"

"Go, duh!" Locke answered. Zero cursed loudly.

"Locke! You're supposed to say to say 'stop'!" He almost bawled as he ran for his hair down the hall. Locke looked on as he sped around the corner, screaming at X.

"What the flip?" She pondered as she headed toward the bathroom.

* * *

Zero murdered X's door when he got to it. He now had no less than five pairs of 'Maverick Scissors' chasing his ponytail. The door opened just as soon as it was pounded on, felling the tall blonde. He looked up and saw X standing in front of him with a remote control. The brown haired Hunter smiled evilly.

"What the hell, X?! Make it stop!" Zero pleaded. X chuckled.

"No way! Not until you do what the note tells you."

"What did I do?!" Zero panicked.

"You put a block of ice in my armor locker, diphead!" X turned the crazed scissors off and picked them up.

"So what?! It's not like you use that…wait. You don't have a fridge down there?" X shook his head furiously. Zero narrowed his eyes as he thought back to why he had the ice there in the first place. Then he buried his face in the small note.

"So are you going to apologize or aren't you?" X broke the silence. Zero finally gave in when the shears hovered back to life.

"Okay, man! I'm sorry I put expensive ice in your armor locker. There I said it! And when you see Alia, tell her I said sorry for 'something I did to her a long time ago.'" X smiled as Zero turned to leave. He eyed the blades of doom, waiting for X to deactivate them again. They hovered there, swaying back and forth. After a few seconds Zero nervously turned back to X. "Come on, X! Turn the damn things off, for crying out loud!"

"I'm not in control." X said slyly. Zero looked at his hands and saw no remote. He began sweating again. "I think you better pay Alia a visit."

"Damn it!" Zero shouted as he took off towards Alia's room. X laughed robustly as the once fearless prankster ran for his life from a pair of cutting tools.

X was interrupted from his hysterical state when he received a message from Douglass. He immediately gulped, knowing that the mechanical mastermind would have a 'wonderful' surprise for him. Sighing, he changed into uniform and contacted the rest of the 'group'.

* * *

Stryke walked briskly down the lengthy hall as he adjusted the collar of his shirt. He slinked his way past numerous Reploids as he journeyed. He had heard stories about Douglass' mishap inventions, and now he was getting one. The thought of something backfiring chilled him, but he continued on anyway. He ran into Leyna on the way. She seemed just as nervous.

"Sup, Stryke."

"A whole lot of nothin'."

"Yeah. I guess we all get new weapons or something. I'm not thrilled about it though." Leyna's voice dropped off as she thought about the stories X told her. He had four cannons malfunction, three of which exploded. But something else bothered her, and it wasn't Douglass' mishap creations. It was Stryke. She may not show it, but something on the inside bothered her about him.

"Leyna? You ready?" Stryke asked, breaking her from the disturbing thoughts. She shook her head and realized that they were standing in front of the entrance to the R&D Lab.

* * *

MHHQ, R&D Lab  
Time:  
-07:18-

The last two Hunters walked in the lab, faces unsure of what they would find. The lab was filled with numerous tools and gadgets, both complete and unfinished. Different armors, weapons, and even not combat items such as headset communicators and marking beacons, lined the perimeter. Most had tags on them, indicating the date and description of its malfunction.

"X! Over here!" Douglass shouted. He seemed rather proud of whatever it is he was about to unleash on poor X. The famous Hunter reluctantly walked over to Douglass, who was standing in front of what could be an armor capsule.

"Stryke, over there!" Douglass happily pointed to another armor capsule. It was unceremoniously sitting next to a pile of failed healing canteens.

"Oh, shit…" He muttered as he walked over to the capsule.

"Leyna, next to Zero!" Douglass commanded. She spied a small box next to Zero, who was already playing with his newly enhanced Z-Saber. The blade was about a foot longer and was adjustable down to the size of a small combat knife. A button on the side caused it to morph into a pistol shaped buster when pressed. He placed it in the holster on his hip and grinned.

"This is by far the coolest thing you've given me, Doug." He stated with amazement.

"Really?!" The stout designer elated. Zero nodded his head.

"Yeah! I mean, I've had it in my hands for more than a minute and it hasn't blown up yet." Douglass grunted at the fake compliment. He turned his attention to Locke, who was now wearing a pair of lightweight gauntlets. She held out her arms and watched as the top half of the armguards slid apart and a motorized short range plasma emitter sprung up. Handguards slid out as the emitter spun around and produced energy blades.

"Ohmigod! Awesome!!" She beamed at her new weapons. She resisted flailing her arms for fear of killing one of her teammates. Douglass smirked at his invention.

"I call it Kinetic Justice!" He threw a triumphant fist in the air. She deactivated the weapons and watched as they reverted back into the gauntlets. Leyna suddenly phased in from thin air.

"Active camo. I like it." She smirked.

"I thought you would! Now, X and Stryke, last but not least, you two have my best creations." Douglass alluded.

"Douglass, why did you bother to make all of these?" X inquired. The lights flickered a bit. "We haven't had an attack in about a year." Stryke nodded his head in agreement. The short engineer scratched his chin.

"Well, you ever get that feeling that something BIG might happen?"

* * *

Cliffs  
Time:  
-07:24-

"Okay. We have two guards. Which one to pick?" Rayne concentrated on the targets as she lay prone in the grassy overlook south of the MHHQ. She thought about wind resistance; it was high. Snow was starting to fall in sheets. Percent error was high. She had one shot.

"Rayne. Teams are in position. Take the shot." Scar spoke softly through her headset.

* * *

MHHQ, Security Perimeter  
Time:  
-07:24-

Pico hated guard duty. He was constantly being stationed there. "Sometimes, I think I was built for guard duty. No other reason. Just this shit. I have other things I could be doing, 'stead of just standing here bored outta my fricken mind. Oh yeah, I also _hate_ snow." Terra looked at him with a drawn out face.

"Hey, it's either this or paperwork. Your poison. Personally," She paused. Pico waited for her to finish her lecture.

"Personally, what?" He asked turning his head towards her. He only had time to gasp at the sight of Terra's half-missing skull staining the ground with blood before Echo materialized in front of him.

"Sorry, dude. Should of stuck with paperwork." She teased before bringing her tonfa blade through his neck. She jumped down in front of the door and smirked as her squad of Mavericks materialized behind her.

"Let's do this, 13th!" She roared.

* * *

MHHQ, R&D Lab  
Time:  
-07:25-

'_Attention all Hunters! Report to the Assembly Hall ready for dispatch, on the double! We are under attack! This is not a drill, I repeat, this is not a drill! Attention…'_

The group of Hunters looked around the room, shocked by the blaring klaxon and monotonic message confirming their fears. They were under attack.

"Somethin' like this, Doug?" Zero said, a feeling of anxiousness welling inside of him. He pressed a forefinger to a panel on his gauntlet and phased in his infamous crimson armor. "What better time to test drive these things than a time like this?" He exclaimed as he dashed out the door.

"Right. You guys should go!" Douglass declared before giving Stryke and X brief instructions on their new toys. X would receive an upgrade to his buster cannon and Stryke would get a large metal object meant to attach to his armor. They gave him a quick nod before grabbing their gear and shuffling out the door.

* * *

MHHQ, Assembly Hall  
Time:  
-07:27-

X and Stryke rushed into the Hall, finding the same group they were just with. Signas was staring at a video feed of Terra's head exploding and Pico's beheading. Then a large group of Reploids and Mechanoids appeared out of thin air.

"What's the situation?" X asked the High Commander.

"A sneak attack. Right at our front door. They punched through our frontside security. Hunters, we must stop them!"

"Mavericks?" Locke asked for everyone. Signas nodded his head.

"Without a doubt. They took out our sentries by sniper and cloaking fields. I've got Special Unit 0 checking the nearby mountain and hills for possible marksmen." Signas stated.

"I'll go with them!" Zero blurted. Signas shook his head.

"No, Zero we need you here, inside the base."

"But…"

"I'm sure the 0th will be fine, Zero. Have faith in them." Zero crossed his arms and thought long and hard about the situation. Signas, meanwhile, informed X about the 17th's whereabouts.

"The 1st, 14th and 17th are locking horns with the enemy here, here and here. The rest of the Hunters are providing backup." Signas pointed at the main entrance, southwestern lot, and cafeteria. "I'll leave it up to you five where to go. Move out!"

"Sir!" The group saluted and dashed off, ready to defend their home. All of them but Zero.

"Zero, what are you," Signas started to reprimand but stopped when Zero shot him a murderous stare. He gulped.

"Signas…If I lose my unit again…I won't be able to hold back…sir." Zero alluded before he warped off in an angry flash of crimson. Signas thought about his words for a moment before heading towards the Navigation Sector.

* * *

MHHQ, North Corridor  
Time:  
-07:36-

The Hunters warped outside of the blast door leading to the mess hall. They assessed the situation after contacting their individual units and divisions.

"_Where's Zero?_" Alia's voice emanated into X's head.

"I don't know. He didn't warp with us. Probably checking on his unit." X offered.

"_X, I don't know about you but I have a bad feeling about this attack._"

"I know. But we have to stop them." X said clenching a fist.

"_Okay. Be careful, all of you. There is a high possibility that they have unseen weapons._"

"Roger that, Ally!" Locke chirped over the headset.

"Okay. Locke and Stryke will take the southwestern lot, Leyna and I will head for the cafeteria." X commanded. They all nodded.

"What about Zero?" Leyna asked.

"_I'm already engaging them at the main entrance. I'll meet up with you guys later!_" Zero chimed in, multiple weapons fire and shouts heard in the background. An explosion drowned out his voice before he cut the comm link.

"Alright, let's move!"

* * *

Alright, stay tuned for part two!

Till Next Time!


	4. The Pain of Warfare pt 2

Disclaimer: Blah blah blah. I don't own Megaman X.

* * *

**Chapter 4: The Pain of Warfare pt. 2**

Day 2  
MHHQ, Mess Hall  
Time:  
-07.38-

X and Leyna stepped through the reinforced digisteel doors and let them close behind them. A fierce firefight was being exchanged between the Hunters and the Mavericks, the former faction hiding behind tables and food carts. The Mavericks on the other hand were flooding in from a large hole in the far wall of the mess hall.

"I'll go scout out their numbers." Leyna said as she activated her active camo and dashed ahead. X ran ahead and slid behind a table. His new armor from Douglass allowed him to move much swifter than before. It was reinforced with lightweight digisteel, making the armor both fifty percent lighter and stronger. His helmet had a retractable faceguard, which he though was a nice touch. He charged his arm cannon to fifty-five percent. Right on cue, Leyna's voice buzzed through his headset.

"_Looks like you've been spotted X! Got a group of about five headin' your way._" X spun around and stood up in one fluid motion. He quickly targeted the Mavericks approaching him and let loose the blast. He was surprised when the powerful plasma passed through the Mavericks with incredible speed. He was even more surprised when he saw a group of Hunters dash in front of the line of fire.

"Oh no! STOP!" X yelled. As if the energy sphere heard him, it simply phased out before it claimed the lucky Hunters. He dashed into the middle of the fray with confidence in his new equipment.

Leyna drew her pistols and set them to charge up concussive bolts. She ran up to an unlucky Maverick and placed an invisible pistol to the side of his head. The pain was quick as he slumped to the ground. She found another Maverick attempting to snipe a group of Hunters and threw a knife at him, impaling his arm. The evil reploid howled out in pain as he dropped the rifle, sending a shot into the leg of a Hunter. He turned about and saw Leyna as she flashed into view. She was about to bury a bullet into his head when a strong force knocked her down to the ground. The Maverick merely shuffled his feet, regaining his balance he morphed in his arm cannon and fired a volley at her from point blank.

"Hold on!" A voice said as Leyna was scooped up off the ground. X had dash rammed the injured Maverick moments before he could pull the trigger. As he set Leyna down, he eyed a group of injured Hunters scrambling for protection.

"Commander X!" One of the surviving hunters called out to his superior. X motioned for Leyna to get the injured to safety. Her internal threat detector screamed at her to dive, so she did. Time seemed to slow down as she caught a glimpse of the quick assassin. She had lavender armor over a black jumpsuit and wielded two blades with perpendicular grips. The agile Maverick frowned at her before bounding over a table. Leyna checked to make sure no one was hurt before she drew her pistols again. But to her dismay, the few remaining Mavericks were pulling back.

"What the hell? They're retreating?"

"There's one left! AHH! She's too fast!" A short Hunter screamed as the violent speed demon crippled him. She hoisted him in the air by his armor collar.

"Where's your commander?" She asked calmly and quickly. She felt someone close in behind her. She would have known that Megaman X was behind her even if he didn't have his buster trained at her head.

"I'm right here. Now let him go." X demanded. Echo dropped the young reploid with a thud, causing him to cry out in pain. She turned to face the taller, blue armored X.

"I don't want to fight you, X. You must pull your Hunters away from the lot if you want them to save them!" She informed him. X cocked an eyebrow, but kept his cannon pointed at her.

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that your friends are in grave danger! Trust me!" X eyed the short woman. Just then, a bright flash illuminated the sky. The cafeteria was flooded with brilliant green light. Both reploids turned their heads as the light reached their eyes. Soon after it dissipated, X heard a terrifying message.

"_Ugh, someone help! It's Locke! She's…she's…damn it!_" Stryke's voice cut out after the short transmission. X felt his heart drop as the message played over and over again in his mind. He looked at the lavender Reploid and activated his faceguard. She grimaced and turned to dash down the hall. X felt nothing short of rage as emotion took control of his body. He jumped forward and activated the Ultimate Dash, hurtling his body toward the purple girl.

Echo stopped short of the massive blast doors and swore under her breath. Almost as soon as she stopped, she had to avoid a string of buster bolts. She rolled to safety, but not before taking a shot to the shoulder and chest. She unfurled herself and patted at the scorches on her armor. X deactivated his dash and performed a sliding kick from the momentum. Echo didn't have time to dodge this attack, so instead took the hit full on. She watched the room spin a few times before she hit the ground with a thud. She groaned as she was lifted off the ground.

"X, why are you wasting time!? I've told you to go help your friends!" Echo pleaded. X ignored her, his eyes wandering as a voice in his helmet explained Stryke's SOS in depth. He turned his head and snarled at the fearful girl.

"I just got a message that one of my lead Hunters went erratic and started killing other Hunters. _What happened?_" X narrowed his eyes as fire leaped from them.

"I'm sorry! I..I don't know…the effects…" Her vision started to blur as horrid memories ran through her mind. She fell to the ground on all fours as X aimed his buster at her and charged it to full. The cannon started to shake violently as more and more energy was drawn into it. The outer casing parted and slid back to vent off steam and excess pressure as it continued to charge. X growled as he thought about the situation. That's when he heard Echo scream for whoever was behind him to stop.

A lone Maverick was charging X with a knife in hand. In the blink of an eye, X spun around and fired the cannon. The thick laser tore through the rookie from Echo's squad with ease. All that was left of him was his mangled torso. He managed to look up at Echo and cough up some blood before the rest of it drained from his abdomen. X stood there with a foreboding feeling. Echo slowly stood up behind him. X turned his head to face the shaking Echo.

"He…was a rookie…" She murmured as she wielded her weapons. X gasped when he heard this.

"I…" X started but was lost for words when Echo looked up at him with wide, golden eyes. He could see the rage and agony seething from her.

"He was just a kid. His first mission!" Echo erupted as she threw caution to the wind and throttled the blue bomber.

* * *

Cliffs  
Time:  
-07:43-

Rayne remained prone as the 0th Unit combed through the area. She eyed the Hunters with a racing heart as they passed her up, one by one. Heavy footsteps stomped past her as she waited for the group to pass. It wasn't until she had snow kicked in her face several times before the last Hunter stopped and looked dead at her. He walked over to her and knelt down beside her.

"By this tree, right?" He whispered. After a moment, he reached out towards the cloaked sniper and picked up a small ring. He sighed with relief as he tossed the ring up and caught it before warping off with the rest of his squad. Rayne deactivated the cloak and armed herself with the odd rifle on her back. She thought about what she was about to do.

"_Rayne. Do you see a target?_" Scars voice broke her train of thought.

"Not yet. Had to avoid the search party. Wait…"

"_What?_"

"Are we doing the right thing?" She heard him sigh harshly.

"_I don't know, and I don't care. But if we want to live to see tomorrow, you have to fire that rifle. NOW!_" Scar deadpanned. Rayne flinched at the harshness of his tone, but took aim anyway. She saw two figures glide into view. She debated on the target for a bit before deciding. Then she closed her eyes and pulled the trigger. She stood and tapped her headset.

"Squad 13. Prototype Alpha has been launched. Pull back immediately." She spoke while masking a broken heart.

* * *

MHHQ, Southwestern Lot  
Time:  
-07:39-

Stryke pressed his back against a ruined hovercar. He muttered something about someone buying him a new one. He leaned out placed a few shots into three random Mavericks, dropping all of them. He popped over the hood and tore through a line of them before having to recharge. A storm of plasma bullets pelted his car as it started to smoke. He spun to the left and activated his dash skates, a nifty function similar to Locke's own footwear. He glided away from the vehicle before it went up in smoke, frowning as it did so. A bolt grazed his shoulder as he looked for more cover. He eyed Zero's auto, but decided against it. Instead, he dashed head first for a group of enemies with his rifle up. He yelled as the bullets bounced harmlessly off of the invisible field on the front of his rifle. He pulled a device from his belt and stuck it to a Maverick as he slid by, taking a few bullets as he did so. The armor Douglass gave him did a great job dispersing the plasma bolts. He spun around when he got to a safe distance and covered his ears as the group exploded.

"HA! That's for my car, bastards!" He screamed, pumping a fist in the air. Locke blazed past him on her own pair of rollerblades and dodged a pair of plasma bolts. She glanced at Stryke's feet and smirked.

"Copycat!" She teased before activating her blades. She kept one locked forward and had the other in rotation mode, acting as a shield. She gracefully glided around a dozen Mavericks, parrying and counterattacking them. She jumped and vaulted over a tall Maverick attempting to crush her with a warhammer. She extended her arms and let blades slice through his shoulders, sending a stream of blood spurting either way from his body. She landed in front of another group and dug her foot into the ground causing her to go into a spin. She held out her arms to the side and activated her blades in spin mode. She heard the zaps of the blades eating through their armor and the screams of agony as she cut through flesh and bone. She stopped her deadly buzzsaw attack and looked at the bloody pile of Mavericks that were either dead or dying.

"Not bad! That's a new record!" She glanced around and saw that most of the Hunters that were not injured were repelling the remaining enemies. She was about to run over to one of comrades when a bolt of energy passed through her heart. She gasped and slumped over as her systems shut down. Then, a bright green light illuminated the area, blinding everyone.

Stryke covered his eyes as he blindly fired on a heavy armored mechanoid, hoping to score a hit. He was rewarded when he heard the beast howl in pain. When he opened his eyes, a large hand shot out and grabbed him. He dropped his rifle in an attempt to escape, leaving him weaponless. He looked around frantically as the giant robot threatened to crush him. Nothing.

"Plan B then!" Locke yelled out before leaping up and severing the mechanoid's limb. It howled out in pain as it took a swing at the swift girl. It howled out again as it's second arm fell to the ground with a large thud, seeping it's lifeblood. Locke looked at the stumbling giant and pounced on it, digging her blades into it's armor as much as she could. Stryke stood up and reclaimed his rifle. He holstered it on his back and looked over at Locke.

Locke had broken through the thick chest plate of the Maverick and buried her blades into his robotic core, despite his horrific cries of agony. She activated the gauntlet motors and ripped whatever was on the inside to pulp, chuckling as she did so. By the time she finished gutting the mechanoid, her gray camo armor was teeming with dark red fluid. The lifeblood of the dead Maverick dripped from her hair in torrents. Stryke was disturbed by the sight. He knew Locke was a violent fighter, but this was beyond anything he had ever seen.

"Wow…um, Lieutenant Locke, are you okay?" A Hunter from the 14th worried. Quicker than lightning, Locke beheaded the poor girl. She watched with a large grin as her head bounced lightly on the ground and rolled a short distance. The crazed 14th commander then proceeded to chop the headless body in two with a vertical swing, showering the area with blood. Multiple screams erupted as Locke pounced on random nearby Hunters.

"No! Locke, STOP!" Stryke cried out as he rushed over to the girl. He felt the metal container on his back shift. He leaped in the air, closing his eyes as the Mobius jettisoned from him, causing his armor to form seams. His armor then slid back in multiple places and activated more plating from deep within. When he landed, Stryke's normal black armor had bulked up a bit and phased in more metal. Metallic shielding covered the places the jumpsuit was, making him look like a small mech. The Mobius also doubled his normal strength, but slowed him down just a small bit. He picked up a small piece of debris and chucked it at her, shifting her attention to him. She withdrew her blade from another Hunter and turned to face him. Her face was covered in the crimson liquid from those she had slain. Stryke swallowed hard at the sight. His best friend had become nothing short of a killing machine. He couldn't take her down, not lethally. She meant too much to him.

"Locke…no…" Stryke whispered as he activated one of his mini-rifling cannons on his arm. He slowly aimed it at her, his arm shaking the entire time. He looked into her twisted, incandescent green eyes with fear. She licked her lips free of blood, giving him a devilish grin while she did so. She started swaying toward him with murderous intent. Stryke was frozen in fear as she drew closer. Then she dashed at him full speed with her blades ready.

* * *

MHHQ, Main Entrance  
Time:  
-07:40-

"Tikan, come in." Zero spoke into his head set while running his saber through a Maverick.

"_Yes, sir?_"

"You guys okay?"

"_Yeah, we're fine. No sign of a sniper though._" Tikan was the third best Hunter in the 0th Unit. Zero sighed silently to himself as he parried a blade from behind him. He spun around and sliced through the Maverick, bringing the total to twelve.

"Good. Keep your guard up; There's somethin' fishy about this attack, and I don't like seafood."

"_Will do, Commander._" Tikan responded before gasping. "_Zero, you lost a ring a while ago, right?_"

Zero thought about his question for a bit, rolling clear of a plasma burst. He drew his own Z-Buster and brought it across the face of the Maverick grunt. "Yeah, did you find it? I think it was near a natural tree."

"_Alright, I'll find it._"

"You're the best, man!" Zero chuckled before cutting the communication. A loud boom erupted as a giant tank blew a hole in the side of the building. Everyone scrambled as the large war machine hovered into the entrance. Zero grinned as he rushed forward, Z-Saber ready. The tank started charging its cannon, shining a brilliant blue, but Zero didn't slow down. The cannon fired straight in Zero's path. He activated the extend program in his saber and swung it forward with a mighty roar. The offensive plasma from the cannon did a complete 180 and took the shape of a giant blade. It passed through the tank, cackling as it did so. The machine then shone brightly before exploding. Zero replaced his saber and dusted his hands off before calling in to Alia.

"Alia, this is Zero. All hostiles in the Main Entrance area have been neutralized or repelled. We have about four injured Hunters, none of them critical. Mission accomplished." Zero said triumphantly. The Hunters in the area whooped and hollered over the victory.

"Good job, Zero. I'll send a med team to transport the injured." She paused. "Zero, heads up, you have multiple targets approaching the area!"

Zero spun around and caught the sight of two reploids dashing at top speed towards the entrance. Behind them was a group of about twenty Mavericks. He swore loudly as he readied his saber. His narrowed eyes tried to identify the leaders. Then it hit him.

"Scar…" Zero growled, unleashing his saber. The two commanders stopped short of the lone red demon. Echo held up a hand, signaling her unit to stop. Scar stepped forward, his face hidden behind a dark shadow mask.

"Echo…" The tall ninja reploid muttered.

"'Sup?" His shorter subordinate replied without taking her eyes off the crimson warrior.

"Take your squad to point bravo. Leave Zero to me, he's dangerous."

"No way! I'm not letting you face him alone." Echo replied.

"Echo, I won't say it again." Scar took an unusually fierce tone with her, causing her to be taken aback. She sighed.

"Fine, alright. Let's go bravo squad." Echo commanded as she eyed Scar before falling back. Scar crossed his arms and deactivated his mask. Anyone that wondered why his name was what it was would find out by looking at his bare face. Several scars of varying size were littered across his face, showing the signs of many reckless battles.

"Zero, fighting won't be necessary today." He spoke, his deep familiar voice causing Zero's blood to boil.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"Would you believe me if I said that I'm not here by choice?" Scar questioned. He stood there with his arms folded, eying Zero a battle ready. "Trust me, Zero. I'm not the enemy this time." Zero spat at his words.

"Can it, bastard! I'll never forgive you." Zero snarled as he swung his saber.

* * *

Okay! Hooray for cliffhangers!

Till Next Time!


	5. To be Betrayed

Disclaimer: I. OWN. NOTHIN'!! My original characters, I DO own them.

* * *

**Chapter 5: To be Betrayed**

Day 2  
MHHQ, Main Entrance  
Time:  
-07:43-

Echo dashed outside and around the corner, eying the dead Hunter sentries again with hidden remorse. The price of being a mercenary is high; you can have either friends or a paycheck, not both. But her situation was quite different. If she had a choice, she would be doing something useful with her talents other than working for a client, only to blow their brains out a week later for another client. But money wasn't the object this time around. It's different when you're forced to kill. Her life was on the line.

She signaled her squad to invade the parking lot, knowing that she was sending them to their deaths. She hated the fact that she had to stand behind other reploids and watch them get slaughtered. Veteran fighters as well as rookies. She was used to working with her usual group, not commanding a small attack force. Leadership wasn't one of her top qualities, but she really didn't have the option to choose who was in charge. She watched as the group of reploids battled for unknown reasons. She pondered on that thought.

"Come to think of it, what the hell are we fighting for?" She inquired. She then shrugged. "Eh. Didn't matter before, doesn't matter now."

She jumped into the fray, looking around with confusion. Their objective was to disturb the Hunters and eliminate their leaders. So why weren't any of Scar's troops doing that? Just when she questioned their objective, something buzzed in her ear.

"_Attention squad 13. Prototype Alpha has been launched. Pull back immediately._"

Echo's eyes went wide at the message. A dreadful thought crossed her mind. She hoped for everything she considered holy that she was wrong. She threw her arms back and dashed forward at top speed toward X's location, dodging the soldiers from Scar's squad that started to turn-tail. She hopped over a table, looking down to see a purple haired Hunter duck beneath her. She bounded across the floor, losing track of X. A shot flew dangerously close to her face, jarring her concentration a bit. She locked on to the frantic Hunter trying to kill her and lifted him by the collar. She asked him for X, but found the reploid in question behind her with a buster aimed at her. She tried telling him to pull his troops out, but why should he listen to her? After all, they _did_ tear down their front door and swarm their home. Then a bright flash illuminated the area, confirming her worse fears: the prototype was launched. The next few moments were a blur as she tried to grasp at what their true objective was all along. Her head was overflowing with painful and haunting memories of the development of the Weapon. She knew they were going to test it, but didn't know the after effects or when they were going to test it.

"Commander!" Someone shouted behind X. Echo looked behind him and saw the rookie from her squad dashing at full pelt with a knife at X. She tried to scream for him to stop, but it was too late. X whipped around and fired the cannon at point blank. She watched with a bruised soul as the rookie looked at her before slumping back down. She couldn't take this anymore. She hated the fact that a rookie gave his life for a false objective. She now knew that X or Zero weren't their true objectives, but that didn't matter anymore. She rose up and brandished her blades, ready to carry out her original plan, or die trying.

"He was just a kid! His first mission!" Echo screamed as her eyes burned a golden hue. She dashed at X with tremendous speed, almost scoring a hit. The Hunter rolled to the side and fired off a few shots, all of them hitting their target. Echo didn't do so much as flinch as the pain dissipated quickly. She let out multiple war cries as she swung her blades violently at X, connecting a few times against his armor. He managed to grab one of her arms and toss her onto her back, only to have her bound off of the floor and throttle him once more. He let loose a string of shots that she either parried or took to the body as she dashed around behind him. He winced as she drove her foot into the back of his leg causing him to lose balance. As he fell to his knees, he fell forward in order to avoid a deadly haircut. He rolled onto his back and pointed his feet at the furious Maverick just before he activated a quick dash. The propulsion jets in his armored boots scorched Echo's armor and blinded her as he barreled backwards. He planted his hands on the ground and sent himself into a series of backward flips. He landed several feet away from the still recovering Echo with a painful thud. His right knee was killing him, but he managed to stand up and start charging his buster anyway. He would have to end this, _now_.

Echo recovered, her eyes fading back to their original color. She cringed greatly as she felt the pain from every bullet that collided with her earlier. The effects of the A-Drive were a double edged sword: it allowed the combatant to shrug off any and all pain for a set amount of time as well as increase their natural abilities, but when it wore off, all of the pain that was stopped hit at once, and drained half of their energy. She recovered just in time to spot X charging his cannon. She dashed at him (with half the speed she had earlier) in an attempt to stop him. She watched as his cannon split apart in the same way as before. He activated the faceguard as Echo stopped in front of him. She drew back her arm in an attempt to drive it into his cannon. X waited for split second then deactivated the charge just as the lavender warrior dug her blade into the buster. This caused her tonfa hand to become jammed in the cannon, trapping her. X then grabbed the Z-Saber hilt from his back and sliced through her extended arm, lopping it off just above the elbow. She fell backwards from the extreme pain and shrieked loudly. X opened the cannon vents and let her limb fall out to the ground. He grunted painfully as he inspected his hand, which was bloody from being impaled by the blade. He limped over to the squirming Echo and grimaced. It was over.

"Ah…damn it all!" Echo yelled out, finally feeling her anesthesia system run its course. She slowly removed her hand from her stubbed arm and looked up at X, who was looking down at her with a curious expression. "What are you waiting for? Aren't you going to…finish me off?" She questioned. X shook his head.

"No, I'm not. You said some things that caught my attention." X replied sorely flexing his left hand. He pressed his good hand to his helmet and called for a recovery team. "You know something, and we need to find out what it is." Echo sighed, half out of relief, and the other half from exasperation. The recovery team had arrived and observed the situation.

"So, you plan to take me prisoner?"

"In a sense."

"Perfect. Just great…" She muttered as she pulled out her remaining blade. She flipped it around with the grip pointing towards X. "I won't be needing this then. Take it." X looked down at the blade and grabbed it from her. The recovery team shouted for X to look towards a hole in the wall. There stood Scar, gravely injured, eyeing the scene. Echo turned her head to see him and growled. She immediately took her blade back from X and heaved it at her 'friend'. It fell short and slid, stopping when it hit his foot. Scar looked at her with a quizzical expression. She then took off her headset and tossed it to the ground, causing it to break.

"Are you insane?!" Scar half screamed. Echo glared blades at him. She gave him the middle finger before standing up to be carted off by the Hunters. Scar shook his head as he warped off in a dark light. Zero dashed through the hole seconds later, just missing Scar.

"X, you heard from Stryke?" Zero inquired. X shook his head as he remembered the communication. Without a moments notice, he followed Zero and dashed out of the ruined cafeteria.

* * *

MHHQ, Main Entrance  
Time:  
-07:44-

Zero dashed at Scar with ferocity that he has never felt before. He swung his saber at the ninja's head, attempting to chop it off. Scar dodged this move and countered with his blade. Zero parried the blow and threw a punch that smashed against Scar's face, jarring his mask loose. He followed up with a barrage of punches that punished the Maverick's face even more. After a few seconds of that, Scar managed to catch both of Zero's wrists and toss him into a small statue, shattering the old stone structure. Zero stood up and brandished his saber once more before dashing full throttle at Scar. The black clad warrior drew his own katana and activated the plasma edge, blocking the multitude of strikes. Plasma particles leaped from the contact of their weapons, creating a bright light. They jumped back, each daring the other to move. Scar deactivated his mask, spitting a small amount of blood to the ground.

"Zero! I don't expect you to forgive me, so I won't waste my time apologizing! But, we're not the enemy!" Scar tried to reach him, knowing it was near impossible.

"You killed my unit. That makes you my enemy. Enough said." Zero retorted coldly. He snarled at the horrid memories of being paralyzed and having to watch as his unit was sliced to ribbons in front of him. Scar grimaced as he put a hand up to his ear and yelled at whoever was on the other end of the line. Then, he turned to face the red devil.

"I know you won't listen, but I'm not doing this on my own accord. Just like I didn't have a choice between your unit or my unit." He alluded bitterly. Zero had enough. He rushed forward and power punched Scar, who was slow to react, in the chest, cracking his armor as he did so. Scar flew back into a bench, breaking it as he did so. He tried to get up, but a Z-Saber imbedded itself into his right shoulder, preventing that action. Zero marched up to Scar while activating his buster.

"You're not putting up much of a fight, Scar." Zero stated as he aimed the cannon at his adversary. Scar stared off into the distance as a message was spoken in his headset before glancing at the angry Hunter with a smirk. He deactivated the Z-Saber and crushed the hilt before standing up. Zero growled as he let loose a string of bolts in an attempt to kill Scar, but to no avail. Scar used his speed and good shoulder to ram Zero in the chest, causing the red Hunter to double over. Both warriors stood there, greatly fatigued from their bout.

"I had to stall you. Figured I'd let you vent some frustration as well. Heh." Scar said before warping off. Zero stumbled to his feet, breathing heavily. He thought about the words Scar had just said. Then Alia's voice disrupted his thoughts.

"_Come in, Zero!_" Her voice frantic. Zero clenched at his chest before answering.

"He ran away."

"…_what?_"

"But before that, he mentioned something about 'stalling me'."

"_Zero, what are you talking about? Didn't you hear Stryke's S.O.S.? He needs assistance, NOW!_"

"What's wrong? Never mind, I'm on my way there." Zero cut the link then proceeded to dash off to the parking lot, scooping up the ruined saber on his way.

* * *

MHHQ, Southeastern Lot  
Time:  
-07:47-

The snow was falling heavily as Stryke took cover behind a blockade of junked hovercars. He was no longer donning the Mobius; Locke saw to that. He was sitting there in his lightly armored jumpsuit, trying to patch up his gashed abdomen. But that proved difficult, seeing as how he had only one working hand. Locke saw to that too. He gave up after what seemed to be forever. The Mobius armor took too much damage to be of use. Locke had disabled his weapon system by cutting through the thick plating on his back. That caused the left gauntlet to explode, sending shrapnel deep into his arm as well.

Now he was armorless as well as weaponless, save for the standard issue pistol holstered on his waist. He found himself repeatedly searching his surrounding for the crazed Hunter, feeling nervous. He remembers watching as the camo-armored girl killed the remaining Mavericks, then turned on the few Hunters there. She chased him through the lot for a while, finally disappearing when the Mobius blew up. Stryke pulled out a small energy capsule and swallowed it, feeling his wounds start to numb themselves. If he had to pick a way to die, this sure as hell wasn't it. Taken out by his best friend, who was the only one he had left. Sure, he had others, like X, Zero, Leyna and others, but they all seemed to be on a different level. They were revered as heroes, while he was just starting his own story. He jumped a bit when Alia contacted him.

"_Come in, Stryke._" She said calmly. He drew in a deep breath before answering.

"Alia…I'm in bad shape..." He whispered, fearful of drawing himself to Locke's attention, wherever she was.

"_Stay put, Hunter. Help is on the way._" Alia spoke quietly. Stryke heard distant footsteps, followed by an explosion.

"...don't have much of a choice...she's coming for me."

"_Stryke, I need you to tell me what exactly happened._" Stryke shook his head with panic as he heard laughter and quickening footsteps along with another loud boom.

"Shit! She's coming! Help me!" Stryke hollered as he dropped the communicator and rolled as quickly as he could to avoid a swift death. He somehow ended up on his feet. He cringed as blood seeped from his reopened stomach wound. Locke pushed the two halves of the destroyed hovercar apart with glowing eyes and a sinister laugh. She stepped towards Stryke with a murderous gaze. He stepped back with fear in his blood as he slowly drew his pistol. But he couldn't bring himself to raise it up. Locke gave a quick laugh before dashing at him with a rotating blade. Stryke tried to move, but found his legs were unmoving. He closed his eyes as he waited for death to take him.

Locke wailed out in pain as she suddenly fell down on all fours, gripping her head in pain. She disengaged the blade gauntlets and threw them as far away as possible before another sudden headache attacked her. Stryke opened his eyes to the disturbing sight, not knowing weather to reach out or stay back.

"S...Stryke-ke! Please…stop…stop-op…me. I'm beg-begging you!" She cried as her eyes pulsed back and forth between normal and A-Drive. Stryke slowly reached out to her, extending a hand. She took his hand and stood up, breathing heavily. A moment passed before anything happened.

"…Locke?" Stryke managed to finally say. The girl's head shot up, revealing golden glowing eyes. She gave him a swift kick to his midsection, jarring his badly wounded gut. He cried out as she swung him into the ground, causing a pile of snow to fly up. He was done. Game over. She stepped over him, raising a heavy boot over his head. He thought about closing his eyes, but didn't have to. The last blow knocked out his ocular systems, rendering him virtually blind. The pain from his gash spread throughout his body. He heard Locke cry out before something fell down next to him. He felt his systems start to fade when a blurry flash of blue light beamed down next to him.

"Ungh!" Locke hollered as she was hit with a minor concussion field, paralyzing her. X bent down and picked the unconscious Stryke up, hoisting him over his shoulder. Electricity danced around his buster arm, still warm from the concussive energy discharge.

"It's going to be okay, Stryke. We will bring Locke back to us." X said to his comrade. Stryke didn't answer, but could hear him, clear as a bell. Locke stood up, shaking off the effects of the paralysis field. She looked up and saw X, standing with his cannon aimed at her chest. Her eyes burned with same golden hue as before.

"_This is much more than an A-Drive overload. She must be infected with a virus, but the Sigma virus doesn't have _these_ kinds of effects._" X pondered to himself. Locke dashed at the new target with a steady pace. She stopped almost as soon as she started. Her eyes faded into a blank white, signaling that her systems just rebooted. She fell down next to the broken hilt of the thrown Z-Saber. Zero walked up behind her and looked down, shaking his head.

"Well, that was a trip and a half. What the hell happened?" His breathing was shallow as he clenched his chest.

"I'm not sure. Have you seen the cafeteria yet?" X shook his head at the thought. Zero scooped up the unconscious Locke and carried her on his back. He wheezed as he did so, feeling the pain from his chest well up.

"Do I even want to?" He replied, hiding his hidden pain.

"_Come in, X or Zero!_" Alia's voice chimed in. Zero nodded at X, who in turn answered the call.

"Alia, this is X. The Maverick forces have been driven out. Zero and I have also stopped Locke. Mission…complete." X chanted dully. Alia sighed out of relief and instructed them to report to Kicker. The Hunters then walked back into the building, unaware of the real danger they were all in.

A figure on the cliff over the massive battlefield scoped the area where X and Zero were. He solemnly thought about this mission he was forced to carry out. It cost him a comrade, his pride, and energy that he didn't have to begin with. Rayne walked up next to him. Scar looked down at her with weary eyes.

"To answer your question…no. We most definitely are _not_ doing the right thing." He stated as they warped off into the early morning sky.

* * *

MHHQ, Medical Bay  
Time:  
-08:39-

"So this is the one that broke off from her unit?"

"Yeah. She tried to warn me about what happened. She didn't even want to fight, until I killed him. I killed her rookie."

"X…"

"Don't beat yourself up. He was a Maverick, and you were protecting yourself."

"You don't understand how it feels to lose someone under your watch. It hurts, especially when it's the new guy."

The doors to the Medical Bay slid open with a slight hiss, followed by a few footsteps. Echo couldn't see anything, but heard every word. Her body was held in place by restraints, not that she would try to make a run for it or anything. In fact, she wasn't sure she would even get far, judging by the number of voices that filled the room. She felt something behind her eyes click and winced as her vision came back online. She looked around and saw X, Zero, Leyna and another unfamiliar reploid. He donned the armor of a supreme officer.

"There we go." Kicker whispered to himself as he loosened the restraints, just enough to allow her to be slightly more comfortable. She looked down at her arms and was relieved to find them both attached. She cleared her throat as she spoke.

"Where am I?" Signas stepped forward.

"You are in the custody of the Maverick Hunters. I hear that you have some information about what happened to Locke."

Echo mouthed Locke's name and looked around, not finding her. She spotted a cut up and bruised Stryke lying on the table next to her and gasped.

"Did…did this 'Locke' do that to him?" The Hunters all nodded at her grimly. She felt an overwhelming sense of guilt.

"He got off easy." Leyna stated. She paused before continuing. "She went berserk and killed off her own division." Echo clenched her fists and started shaking as memories started flowing through her mind again. The effects of Weapon Alpha were horrible. She had to stop it before it was too late. But how? Scar had betrayed her; led her to believe what they were doing was just. Not anymore. She was through with him. She didn't have much choice though, seeing as how she was stuck here in MHHQ.

* * *

Another one down! Stay tuned for more!

Till Next Time!


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